Study Abroad: South Africa

As a recipient of the Global Engineering Preparedness Scholarship (GEPS), I had the privilege to study in South Africa for two weeks, in May of 2022, as a part of the engineering course Empathic Global Leadership for Social Change. This transformative trip refined my critical-thinking skills, social awareness, and cultural competency: I dissected the commonalities between the intrinsic racial disparities stemming from the apartheid government in South Africa and the systems of institutionalized racism within the United States. Furthermore, we performed multiple S.W.O.T analyses on various South African companies, focusing our efforts on identifying gaps in their leadership structure and community outreach. I regained a sense of community in South Africa through exposure to the political and social ideology of Steven Biko and Winnie Mandela. Their progressive ideals redirected my aimless rage at the global injustices facing people of color towards constructive personal and communal empowerment.